As recently as July, we’ve seen camouflaged spy shots of the upcoming, redesigned 2021 Nissan Navara as well as the U.S. market Frontier. This collage of photos, published on the FormaCar website among other places, seem to show the real 2021 Nissan Navara with almost no disguising at all, and these trucks certainly look like the real deal.
At this point, we’ve reached out to Nissan for official comment. However, as is usual with these sorts of leaked photos, manufacturers won’t normally put out a statement on future products (or “speculation”, as these aren’t official photos). Based on the teasers we’ve seen and the shots from the video below, it’s tough to argue these as anything other than real. Nissan’s own “Next” A to Z teaser video showed the same profile that we’re seeing here.
“So wait,” you may be asking. “Why do these photos show ‘FRONTIER’ across the grille and the tailgate? Isn’t this the new Frontier?” We thought so at first as well, but there are some key differences between these trucks and the version we’ve seen roaming American roads.
The headlights and grille are clues
In the photo above, you see what is the U.S.-spec 2021 Nissan Frontier. Design cues are ever so slightly different here, but one of the major changes lies in the grille. The one on this photo is physically smaller than in the collage. It’s also vertical, while the one for the Navara is cantered back slightly, and seems to be longer than the Frontier’s grille. The license plate holder also rests below the frontal sensors on the U.S.-market Frontier. With the Navara (at least if these undisguised photos are accurate), the license plate holder is immediately below the bumper.
The gray truck above also seems to be a Navara “Warrior” – based to some extent on the Titan Warrior concept a few years back. The Navara is sold in Mexico as the Frontier, although it’s not exactly the same truck. What’s more, the Mexican market doesn’t have a “Pro-4X” trim, as we do have here in America. With that sort of styling and the brush guard, though, the “Warrior” could be the Mexican equivalent to the off-road trim we get here in the States.
The rear looks oddly…familiar
This new generation Navara seems to have the model name stamped into a scalloped part of the tailgate. However, with the way it’s styled it looks an awful lot like the rear end of a Toyota Tacoma. Mind you, the taillights have a different shape and are positioned differently than the Tacoma, where the Navara’s light assemblies don’t actually meet the bumper. The tailgate handle is shaped differently as well, but there are some interesting similarities here. The Ford Ranger also has its name stamped into the tailgate, so that seems to be the way forward with midsize truck design.
Time will tell how the U.S.-market Frontier will look, but we thought the undisguised Navara could provide some useful insight. Let us know what you think in the comments below!
